Surname Boriss - Meaning and Origin

Boriss: What does the surname Boriss mean?

The last name Boriss is of Slavic origin and is derived from the given name Boris, which is an ancient Slavic name believed to have found its roots in the Greek word for ‘fighter.’ It was a popular form of address for princes because of its association with strength. Over time, it became a surname and spread throughout countries like Poland, Russia, Serbia, and Croatia.

Boriss is most commonly believed to be derived from the Slavic word ‘bor’, meaning ‘battle’. It can be seen as a testament to those that kept this surname, as it was an indication that their ancestors were warriors and fighters. Their name was a reminder of such bravery and strength.

In more modern times, the name Boriss has become associated with a number of distinguished families from prominent countries. In particular, it was seen in Poland, where there were a number of successful military commanders and politicians who carried the name.

The surname Boriss is still popular in Slavic countries, and represents a part of the cultural and political history of the area. It is a significant part of the ancestry of those who carry it, due to the associations and the status it has held over the centuries.

Boriss: Where does the name Boriss come from?

The last name Boriss is primarily found in Eastern Europe, including countries like Russia and Bulgaria. According to records on the website Forebears, it is one of the more common last names in Latvia and Lithuania, with over 5,000 people choosing it as their surname.

The Boriss last name is also common in other Eastern European countries such as Romania and the Czech Republic. In addition, there is a sizeable number of people who spell this last name differently, including Borys, Boris, Borise, Boryse and Boreys.

Outside of European countries, the name Boriss is not quite as widely used. There are fewer than 200 people in the United States with this surname, and fewer than 100 people in the UK. Someone with this last name is also pretty rare in Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

However, the Boriss name is growing in popularity in the United States. Since 2000, Forebears records show that the number of Americans with this surname has nearly doubled, reaching over 150 people in 2020.

Regardless of where they live, it's likely that those with the last name Boriss have close ties to Eastern Europe. This could mean that their ancestors or family have origins from countries like Russia, Lithuania, Latvia or Bulgaria.

Variations of the surname Boriss

The surname Boriss is believed to have several variants, spellings and surnames of common origin. The most common variants of Boriss are: Boris, Borys, Borysiw, Borisenko, Boriss, Borissow, Borissowich, Borodyansky, and Borysovsky. In some countries, Boriss is written as Bories or Borys, although this is not always the case.

The surname Boriss is commonly found among East Europeans and Ukrainians, where it originated. In East Slavic countries, it is derived from the name Boris, which means "of the fight", and often used as a nick-name for a brave warrior.

Various branches of the same family are commonly known to spell the name differently. For instance, the Russian and Ukrainian variants are spelled in Cyrillic, while other variants like Bories and Borys are English-style spellings.

There are also many mutated forms of the surname Boriss, including Borisowich, Borysow, Borysov, Borisevich, and some double-barrelled last names such as Borisenko-Borissow.

The various spellings of the Boriss name suggest that it may have been spread around eastern Europe by migrating families. However, Boriss also began to grow in popularity in areas such as the United Kingdom and United States in the nineteenth century as East Europeans immigrated. This makes it equally likely that these mutations arose from the same cultural roots and were merely given different spellings.

Famous people with the name Boriss

• German Chancellor Angela Merkel: Angela Dorothea Merkel (née Kasner) is a German politician who is currently serving as the Chancellor of Germany since 2005. She has the maiden name of Kasner but has used Merkel since her marriage to Joachim Sauer in 1998.
• Soviet General Georgy Zhukov: Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov was a Soviet military career officer who rose to become the Red Army's most famous and decorated military commander of World War II.
• Soviet Politician Lev Borissov: Lev Mkrtchyanovich Borissov was the first secretary of the Communist Party of Armenia from 1957 to 1959.
• Russian Poet Boris Pasternak: Boris Leonidovich Pasternak was a Russian poet, novelist, and translator of the early 20th century. He was best known for writing Doctor Zhivago and won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1958.
• Russian Nobel Laureate Alexander Boriss: Alexander Boriss was a Russian chemist and Nobel laureate in chemistry, for his work on stereochemistry and molecules with four asymmetric centers.
• Russian Astronaut Sergei Borissov: Sergei Konstantinovich Borissov is a retired Russian cosmonaut and test pilot who flew on two space missions, one of which was a space walk.
• Soviet General Matvey Matveyevich Boriss: Matvey Matveyevich Boriss was a Soviet military commander who became a Marshal of the Soviet Union and served as an adviser to Premier Joseph Stalin during World War II.
• Russian Biologist Ivan Ivanovich Boriss: Ivan Ivanovich Boriss was a Russian biologist who conducted research on evolutionary processes at the intersection of ecology and genetics. He was also the first director of the Biological Institute of Tomsk.

Other surnames

BorisBorisoffBorisovBorisovaBorisowBorisowaBorissoffBorissovBorissovaBorissow